"Pipe racks" are often mounted to the beds of pickup trucks to carry long objects such as long sections of water pipe, lumber, and the like without having free ends of the load project long distances from the bed of a pickup truck. Typically, a pipe rack is formed of a welded or otherwise permanently joined pipe construction that is put together with a leg structure permanently supporting a rack frame at an elevation over the truck bed such that the frame projects forwardly over the truck cab.
Such frames have utility, but are not always needed and are unsightly and cumbersome when not in use. The frames increase the overall height of the pickup truck and thereby eliminate its use in certain confined areas, such as parking garages and other areas where the height dimension is designed more for standard pickup trucks and cars.
A need has therefore been realized for a rack arrangement that will fold between a compact, inoperative condition at a low elevation adjacent to the pickup bed, and an elevated, operative position with an extension projecting forwardly over the cab of the pickup. This need is fulfilled by the present invention which is disclosed in detail herein.